Is the pressure I feel in my head encephalitis?

I feel this weird pressure in the right side of my head and my head feels kind of soft to the touch, like I can press on it and feel it go in. Is this encephalitis? Are there other symptoms I should look out for?

Answer

There would be no reasons for your head to be 'soft to the touch' unless there was a superficial infection or abscess in the skin. If there were, you would see some swelling, but also some redness and pain and potentially some discharge of material from the infected spot. On the other hand, in the absence of a skin infection feeling like your head is 'soft' is probably just your imagination, or you may be pressing over a place on the skull where muscles are present, such as over the temples, and then the giving sensation is simply the normal soft texture of the muscles.
Encephalitis is a brain infection, and symptoms would include fever, stiff neck, severe headache, and confusion. It does not sound like you have these symptoms, so I wouldn't worry about this.
On the other hand, there are a few common causes of pressure or pain in the head. These include tension headache, migraine headache, and sinus congestion. I would recommend that you go to see your primary care doctor who will be able to help you figure out whether or not you have anything going on that needs to be treated.
Good luck and I hope you feel better soon.

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